Digitalizing Myanmar: Connectivity Developments in Political Transitions – Andrea Calderaro Before fully developing connectivity, Myanmar must set the rules for telecom infrastructure construction and the safeguarding of citizens’ rights. Given the uncertain political climate and the need to establish necessary conditions for securing telecom developments, releasing a telecom law was a key priority that should have anticipated both the construction of connectivity infrastructure and the launch of mobile services. Discussions about the new telecom law slowed down the country’s connectivity agenda, but its release was still a key priority, and a milestone of the connectivity development in the country. Moreover, the process attached to the release of this law opened an unprecedentedly innovative, transparent, and inclusive process of reform in Myanmar, in line with telecom reform best practices. a) A Multistakeholder Approach in Telecom Reform A draft version of the new telecom law was developed with the close support of the World Bank, an organization highly involved in the country’s connectivity plan.20 It was released and circulated to stakeholders, allowing researchers to make some preliminary evaluations. Following one of the key best practices in telecom reform, the Myanmar government implemented the new telecom law through a transparent, public, and inclusive process, which involved multiple actors and welcomed their recommendations. In particular, the government launched an open consultation on this law in order to facilitate a public debate on new regulatory laws aimed at ensuring a free and open telecom market. The draft law was made available online in English for public consultation from November 4-December 2, 2013. The publication of the law in English made it clear that the goal of the government was to enhance dialogues with international actors by creating an opportunity for third parties to access the law and submit their comments. However, the law was not published in Burmese, which 20 “Myanmar Moves Toward Connectivity for All.” World Bank, 6 February 2014. Available at: http://www.worldbank.org/en/news/press-release/2014/02/06/myanmar-moves-toward-connectivityfor-all 11